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Saturday, November 29, 2014

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! My internet has been down much of the week so I haven't been on here, but a break is nice too.

I ran a 5k on Thanksgiving, my first 5k of the year! In fact I think it has been well over a year and a half since I ran a 5k. Seems like a long time to go without running a 5k doesn't it?

I have to admit to feeling nervous and not real sure just how to pace it. I haven't run anything shorter than a half marathon since June, unless of course you count the Ragnar Relay, which I don't.

The weather for the 5k was pretty good, slightly on the chilly side so I wore tights and a long sleeve shirt, and gloves because I hate cold hands. I had been a little worried with all the snow we got Wednesday the streets would be snowy and full of ice. The start line and all around it looked good.

The gun went of and some kid who looked about 10 shoved me rudely aside and sprinted out. I have to admit here, I really wanted to shove him back. There was no "excuse me", just a two handed shove that pushed me into the person next to me. What the heck!?

my only picture from the race.

Anyway I think I did pretty good not starting out too fast since I saw a number of people sprint out nicely (no shoving) past me in the first 100 yards or so that I later passed a lot of later in the first mile. I also passed rude boy, and while I really wanted to give him a double handed shove as I ran past the now laboring kid, I just leaned over and said "you shouldn't be rude and push people when you run past them, it slows you down later" and off I went.

About half a mile into the first mile the streets quit being so nice and turned to a sheet of ice. We had left the main roads and were now in a residential area. It was rough. I tried to mostly run in the snow along the side of the road that wasn't packed down into ice and that seemed to help a lot, but it was still hard to avoid the ice.

Mile 1 6:59
Not too surprised to be under 7, but worried about maintaining it

Mile 2 7:14
Slowed dramatically by the ice, it sure felt good to hit ice free intersections and speed up, but then it was back into the ice!

Mile 3 6:59 WOOT! I really didn't expect the last mile to be under 7, about half of the mile was ice and the other half good streets, so it felt good to speed up and run with fear of falling again.

last .14 was at 6:10 pace. I have to admit.. I felt so good! I passed a girl at the end and had a really strong finish.

Official time was 22:10 for an official pace of 7:09.
My Garmin pace for the 3.14 had me at 7:03.
Kind of makes me want to run another 5k and get back to having sub 7 minute miles all the way!

They gave out pint glasses at the finish line to fill with either beer or root beer. There was lots of oranges, bananas, and frosted cinnamon rolls to eat, but I didn't feel like sticking around. I visited with a few people and then headed home to get ready for Thanksgiving.

I ended up 2nd in my age group. They did the expanded 30-39 age group, other wise I would have won the 35-39 as I was beat by a 30 year old. I did feel better about the 30 year old beating me when I saw her last night at the holiday parade and she told me she was so sore from the 5k.

what I wore and the swag

I wasn't, HA! I guess that means I should have busted my butt a little more.

Speaking of my birthday.. I got new boots for my bday. New cowgirl boots from my Dad and new muck boots from myself :). My old winter boots were nearly 20 years old.. good boots, but time for new ones.

The last time I bought new boots for riding was almost 10 years ago right after I started dating my husband! Yay to both.

Monday, November 24, 2014

Well last week was a bit of a long week, I didn't do nearly as much running as I would have liked, but between picking up an extra day of work and the stomach bug that went through my house there wasn't a lot of time. My turn for the bug was on Friday, and I laid around feeling sorry for myself most of the day. My son was home with me on Friday also and we watched Return to Lonesome Dove (nearly all 7 hours), played cribbage and slept a lot.

I did get in a 5 mile run on Saturday, but kept it short since I had been feeling sick the day before and noticed I still lacked a bit of energy.

I am starting out the week better already as Cola and I got in a good run yesterday and ran half of it on trails. I have also been taking my Dad's dog Roscoe running with us as my Dad is recovering from getting a new hip and his dog is bored!

Cola and Roscoe have a lot of fun running together. It is however very hard to get a picture of the two of them together.

My little cowgirl lost her second tooth yesterday on the way home from town. First she got it stuck in a straight out position though. I tried to get a picture of it, but just didn't happen. I had to borrow money from my son this morning for the tooth fairy. At least I remembered!

sometimes we lose the trail and go where we want

In other news.. I have a 5k coming up on Thursday and I feel so not ready for it! It is going to be a cold one! I think the high is supposed to be in the low thirties, but the race is at 9 am. I do like running in the cold!

and in case you need some motivation and haven't seen this story yet, this girl is amazing

Monday, November 17, 2014

I have to be honest two things have me super excited to run outside today

1. "the Sunny Twenties" Pretty self explanatory. Cold right now, but later on sunshine and compared to what we had last week, warm out there!

It is my favorite winter running weather. Something about it is so invigorating.

2. I didn't run outside all weekend! I did the elliptical, yoga, and a HIIT workout, but no running. That has left me feeling a little cagey and wanting to get outside. I probably could have fit it in, but Saturday was nonstop things to get done in town and then I had a sick kid.

Little cowgirl finished her last event at her mini meet and then proceeded to throw up. She did get all blue ribbons!

Sunday was uber windy out, my husband was busy and I didn't want to take my kid to anyone's house while I ran and run the risk of anyone getting sick.

Thursday, November 13, 2014

My daughter complained of an itchy head as I was bundling her off to school. I reassured her hats can make heads itchy and we went through several hats before she found one of mine she liked. I did also check both kids over for lice since it has made the rounds at school already this year. I didn't see anything I was positive for lice, but I couldn't rule it out really either.

I decided I would Google it later and just pick up some lice control things on my way home from work as a precautionary. I Googled it. EW ew ew. I doubled my resolve to double check the kids when I got home.

While at work my mom texted me "Happy Anniversary". Oops. The cowboy and I both forgot about it this morning. Made a mental note to pick up some wine after work and try to make plans to go out and eat this weekend.

As I was eating lunch I got a call from the school. My daughter had been to the nurse's office twice complaining of itchy head. They had checked her over thoroughly twice and hadn't found anything, possibly she just had an itchy dry scalp. Three girls from her class went home with lice though. I thought of the Google images, itchy scalp, things I had seen this morning that could be nits or eggs and how she crawled in bed and slept on my pillow with me the night before.

My scalp got itchy.

I stopped and picked up two bottles of wine, chocolate, and some lice stuff on my way home.

Luckily I had thrown a roast in the crock pot before I left for work, because after checking both kids heads... they both had it and I didn't want to cook, I wanted to delouse everything.

The little cowboy needed a haircut anyway so my husband got out the trimmers and got to work. He picked a really short one though and pretty soon our son was crying he was bald and he looked bad. Little Cowgirl of course thought it was funny.

Little Cowgirl then decided maybe she should cut her hair a little and asked me to trim it up to her shoulders. I told her to sit up straight and made the first cut. She hunched her shoulders and it ended up chin length.

Cue the drama.

Now she was crying she looked like a boy and it was ugly. Now it was Little Cowboys turn to laugh.

Then I spent the next hour combing out nits and eggs and..eww lice. All the while washing all the bedding and laundry.. two days after I washed all the bedding in the closet due to mouse poo in the closet on everything.

My husband washed dishes. Truly a monumental thing. He never does dishes unless I am gone or sick. So romantic.

After all the drama both kids are loving their new hair cuts.

My husband and I then checked it other's heads, declared each other clean for now and wished each other a happy 9th anniversary.

You can't make this shit up, but you can laugh about and scratch your head.

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

I have to admit when I heard the forecast for Monday.. cold, snowy and a high of 18, I wasn't thrilled with the prospect of running outside in it. I even planned on just doing some cardio inside on my elliptical. Somewhere in the back of my head though I kept remembering I like running in the snow.

After 7 weeks of the best fall weather ever I couldn't imagine why I would like running outside in 18 degree weather. I was cold just looking out the window thinking about it. I hate being cold.

Then I couldn't stand the thought of being a big baby about it, especially since the sun was shining.

seriously doesn't looking at it make you feel a little cold? But look at that beautiful sky!

So I dug around in my closet for my cold weather running layers.

I also added a medium jacket, a hat and gloves. I was actually looking for my "Suck it up Buttercup" tank. but couldn't find it. "Be Epic" worked too I guess.

By the time I got dressed, quit procrastinating and started running the sun was no longer shining. Insert sad face here. Half a mile into the run my face was freezing and I was wondering if I should go home and get a face mask thingy or just go home. I didn't want frostbite on my face.

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Sun! Where did you go?

I had told myself go at least a mile and then you can turn around and go home. By the time I hit I mile, I talked myself into a mile and a half, then 2 miles and then I was totally warmed up, my face had thawed out and I was feeling good and loving winter running again. Truth be told I was a little on the hot side and maybe didn't need such a heavy jacket.

We aren't even supposed to hit freezing until next week so I guess I better just get used to it.

I will say it's the best I have felt running in several weeks and once I got past the my face is going to freeze and fall off stage I loved it. The pace felt so effortless. I remember now why I love winter running.

The hardest part about winter running for me is often getting out the door and maybe that first half mile to a mile until I get warmed up.

Monday, November 10, 2014

A friend of mine introduced me to ArmPocket in July and the first time I ran in one was during a half marathon. I loved it right away and run nearly every run with it now.

mine went across the Golden Gate Bridge with me

How about a quick run down of all the things I love about my ArmPockets, besides the bright colors

I have the Sport I-25 in the orange and in the yellow.

The zipper.

The gripper tabs on it are grippy not slippy. (too cheesy?) They are. I also like that there is two zipper tabs. Makes it easy to zip up around my ear bud cord and to access the pocket while running if I need to, which I frequently do to adjust the volume.

The fabric.

It is thick and durable. and water resistant. and I love the bright colors it comes in.
There is also a reflective stripe around the outside. It is also machine washable. After Ragnar Napa I needed to wash mine it was sweat soaked and then was wrapped in a bag with all my sweaty clothes for four days. Ew.

I can fit my phone inside while still in the Otterbox case. I used to have to take my phone out of the case while running which I found annoying. I can also have full control over my phone without having to take it out of the ArmPocket thanks to the clear protective cover.

Two pockets inside to put money, keys, gels, what ever.
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I have put money, a key, my phone, a gel, and chapstick in during a race. and usually just carry my phone and chapstick while running at home.

from the website, showing how it can be stuffed!

and here is a breakdown to show you how much detail goes into an Armpocket

I also have just learned about the headphone holes on the bottom. How did I not already know this?

This is from the Armpocket website, it is how I learned about the ear bud holes and notice Jason Aldean with Dirt Road Anthem playing on the phone shown.. and my blog is My Dirt Road Anthem...

and there is a handy velcro strap on the side to tuck your head phone cord into to keep it out of the way.

tuck all the slack in and avoid the flying cord problem

What is it like to run with? I was so worried I would be adjusting it constantly or that it would cut off circulation to my arm. Nope. Doesn't bounce, wicks sweat, isn't constricting.

My orange one is a size small and my yellow a medium. I find that I prefer the longer strap to the smaller one. They both are comfortable to run in, but I find the small sometimes comes undone easier. If in doubt size up is my advice.

Check out more about the ArmPocket here.
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It isn't just great for running I also use it when

gardening, yard work

biking

hiking

cleaning the house

on the rowing machine

strength training

To find the one that would work best with your phone start here or check out this handy graph
Want to win one?

Friday, November 7, 2014

1. I can't say enough about the fall we have had. Yesterday was another shorts and tank running kind of day. It was in the 60s and not windy.

2. but don't worry winter is coming for us.

Yuck! Going from a high of 63 Saturday to a high of 25 on Monday is going to be painful! I will have to break out the running tights, gloves, hats, and jacket. I will probably think I am freezing. So not ready for snow yet.

3. I signed up for a 5k on my birthday which is also Thanksgiving and in a spurt of spontaneity signed up for the Street Mile as well. I don't have to do it I guess if I don't feel like it, but I have done it in the past so why not. I haven't done much sprinty speed work this year so I don't expect a PR or anything, but I haven't raced either distance this year so both will be a PR for the year by default.

4. I got fingerprinted a couple weeks ago to volunteer at the school in my kid's classrooms and was surprised to hear this week that I passed and can now volunteer. Okay I wasn't really surprised and my kids are excited for me to help in their classrooms. I love that I am still cool.

5. I bought a zombie mask on clearance at the grocery store yesterday on my way home from work and then hid behind the house and used it to scare my kids when they got home from school. Yep, I am still cool. I may have giggled as I put it in my shopping cart imagining their screams.

6. I had lent out my copy of Zuzka Light's 6 pack abs DVD and finally got it back this week. It was every bit as awesome as I remembered and my abs are crying this morning. Speaking of Zuzka.. I have followed her for quite awhile and she is my top workout inspiration she just launched a new website and is on her own. You can try it free this week. Check it out at zuzkalight.com

Monday, November 3, 2014

To say the weather has been amazing is a serious understatement. I think also a bit needed after surviving the longest winter ever last year. We have had 2 months of gorgeous weather. Fall as it should be in my opinion!

the kids are loving that they are still riding their bikes too

I am still running in tanks and shorts. I ran in capris yesterday and regretted it, as I was quite warm.

My little cowboy had his last football game of the season on Saturday and for once they were very well matched. They were losing by a touchdown and couldn't seem to get any good plays in. After he threw an incomplete pass, I looked over and my son had his head in his hands in absolute frustration. People thought he was injured so grave was his stance.

That's my boy. He is so hard on himself. He ended up making a run all the way down the field for a touchdown several plays later and tied up the game. The game ended in a tie. No overtime in flag football. 5 wins and 1 tie to end the season. No losses.
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So proud of the boys and their coach (my cowboy)

Little cowgirl meanwhile spends her time at the games working on her gymnastics skills and flexibility.
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pretty sure this would cripple me. There was a time in my life I could but that was decades ago!

I was determined to get the house in order on Sunday and was making great progress when the kids insisted I come along to help fix a little fence. I decided the house could wait. My kids after all are growing up so fast!

We helped my hubs fix the fence and then had us a little hike. Cola refused to leave the truck. I am wondering what he knew that we didn't! That was so unusual for him. Bear, maybe? We never saw anything, but did make sure we were loud so we couldn't surprise anything either.

The weather outlook this week is pretty great as well with highs in the 50s and 60s, you can bet I will be soaking it up every chance I get!